Resurrect your drowned mobile device with rice (or alcohol)!

We’re not sure if this qualifies as a rumor, but the “rice effect” has been circulating the internets with seeming authority from the Washington Post. If you are unfortunate enough to drop your precious electronic device in the toilet (stop using your phone on the toilet!) or sink, and you didn’t have the foresight to get handset insurance, you’re basically S.O.L. That is, unless you have a bowl of uncooked rice handy. Apparently, covering the soaked device in a bowl of uncooked rice will absorb all the moisture out of the electronic gadget-turned-paper-weight back into a fully functional mobile phone/pda/ipod/etc – keep in mind to immediately remove the battery and DO NOT try to turn it on after the dunk. Of course, the soaked battery is another issue. A dunked battery is often-times a dead battery. But, hey, all you gotta do is buy a cheap battery instead of a whole new device!

We’re not going to try and validate this claim, as it would involve dunking our precious toys into the drink, but you, our readers, are more than welcome to try it out yourselves! Please let us know how it goes.

Side note: Wikihow says that pure alcohol (100%, 200 Proof) will also dry out that gadget of your in a jiffy! Just dunk the device (without battery, of course) into a bowl of the pure alcohol and you’re set!

I DROWNED MY MOBILE RECENTLY AND HAVE CHANGED THE BATTERY BUT THE SONY ERICSSON K800I WILL STILL NOT START DOES THIS MEAN THAT I NEED TO GET A NEW PHONE.

JoshL.

I dropped my T-Mobile G1 in the toilet a couple weeks ago, and I tried this rice technique because it was recommended to be by a friend. And it worked like a charm. Just put it in a sealed tupperware container and cover it with dry rice overnight, and you’re set. Your warranty is still void, but at least you still have teh working device!

RogueAgent

I work for a wireless carrier and the usefulness of this information is excellent as long as you 1. remove the battery right away, 2 get as much loose water out of the device then place it in the rice for an extended amount of time. Rice does absorb liquid but not at a terribly fast rate. This is mainly just “Prolonging” your devices’ life. Your phone still got wet and the components are more than likely still getting corroded. The alcohol trick actually will work faster due to it’s quick evaporation. You will want to shake the phone in the alcohol for a few seconds to get the water out of the device or mixed pretty well with the alcohol and then let it dry (both without the battery in it). These things DO NOT dry over night! The slightest amount of liquid left in the device and the battery placed in it, or being plugged in could be fatal to the phone. Let it sit!

THE RICE TRICK WORKED A TREAT WITH MY SAMSUNG SGH-E250! But it took repeated immersions in rice. Took a week. In the end I put the open phone, battery and sim card side by side on a bed of rice in the sealed tupperware box, reasoning that better to have good airflow than buying them and having all surfaces covered with rice.